


Wedding Belles

by ThatRavenclawBitch



Series: Where is My Mind [4]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-27
Updated: 2017-01-03
Packaged: 2018-06-04 21:47:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6676588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatRavenclawBitch/pseuds/ThatRavenclawBitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of ficlets that take place at Belle and Gold's wedding in the Where is My Mind universe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

At 8 A.M. on Belle French’s wedding day, she hopped out of bed and ran to the large window of the honeymoon suite she was sharing with her sister and maid-of-honor, Lacey. John had been thoughtful enough to rent it out for the night prior to the wedding so she, Lacey and her other bridesmaids could get ready there. The night of the wedding, Lacey would move in to her own hotel room and Belle and John would have the suite to themselves. 

She threw open the drapes and took in the cloudless spring sky outside. It was an absolutely perfect day, and it was sure to be a perfect wedding. 

Belle turned back to the large king sized bed, eager to pounce on her sister and force her to enjoy the morning with her, but the bed was mysteriously empty. 

It was possible Lacey had gotten up early to go get breakfast or coffee. Her sister was hardly an early riser, but maybe she’d made an exception for her twin’s wedding day. 

With that in mind, Belle moved from the bedroom of the suite to the sitting area, flipping on the television and relaxing. Ruby and Ariel would be there soon to start getting ready and she relished a few moments to herself before the chaos of the day began. 

An hour later she’d sat through a large chunk of the morning news and Lacey still hadn’t returned. 

With a huff, she went back to the bedroom and grabbed her cell phone off the nightstand. She punched in Lacey’s number only to get her voicemail. Another call yielded the same results. A quick glance at the Find My Friends app showed that Lacey was in the hotel, or at least her phone was, but Belle couldn’t hear it ringing or buzzing anywhere in the suite. Belle gave another huff, throwing on a pair of jeans and heading down to the lobby. 

A quick stop at the concierge told her that no one identical to her had been seen in the lobby that morning. Belle racked her brain for where her sister could be. They’d gone out to the bar the night before, an impromptu bachelorette party before the big day despite the lavish Atlantic City bachelorette party Lacey had thrown her a month ago. 

Belle had had a few glasses of champagne and her memory was foggy on the details, but she was sure Lacey had come back to the room with her. Somewhere deep in her subconscious she was aware of a phone call in the middle of the night, her sister’s voice, a shuffle of clothing and the door shutting. 

Suddenly she knew exactly where her sister was.

“I’m so sorry, I completely forgot my room number” she said, approaching the front desk attendant abashedly. “We’re in town for a wedding and the bachelorette party got a bit crazy last night.”

The attendant smiled brightly at her. “No problem, just give me the name on the room.”

“Nicholas Rush,” Belle stated without missing a beat. 

The attendant’s fingers flew across her keyboard before she looked up with a smile. “It looks like you’re staying in room 312,” she said.

Belle thanked her, turning to walk away before smacking herself on the forehead absentmindedly. 

“Oh my God,” she said exaggeratedly. “I have no idea where my key is. My boyfriend will kill me if I wake him up this early. He’s not a morning person.”

The attendant just smiled at her conspiratorially. “I can give you another one, but I’m afraid it’ll register as an extra cost on your bill.”

“That is perfectly fine,” Belle assured her. Nick could pay for keeping the maid of honor away from the bride on her wedding day. Belle had been far from a bridezilla throughout this process, but she was entitled to having her sister’s full attention on today of all days. 

A few minutes later she found herself outside of the room in question, a fresh key card in hand. A quick swipe of the card and she was pushing in to the hotel room, a smaller version of the honeymoon suite a few floors above them. 

The door clicked shut softly behind her and Belle tiptoed into the room only to find her sister spooned up behind Rush amid rumpled bed clothes, both of them sleeping soundly. 

Weighing her options between throwing open the curtains or coughing loudly, she finally decided on a more bold approach. With a Xena like yell she took a running jump and landed right in the middle of the bed. Rush let out a scream the likes of which she’d never heard before twisting away and falling hard on the floor, leaving the bedclothes behind and the good doctor completely starkers.

Lacey just looked up groggily, smiling at Belle.

“Good morning, sis!”

Rush glanced down, belatedly realizing he was on display before dropping his hands to cover himself.

“What the bloody hell?” he demanded.

Belle flopped down on the bed with a smirk.

“I’d apologize, but frankly, I think this is payback.” 

“For what?” Rush demanded angrily as Lacey stifled a laugh behind her hands. 

“Two summers ago,” Belle recounted. “You walked in on me and John. There was a stuffed koala involved. It’s only fair I see your naughty bits in exchange.”

Rush glared at her. He looked as though he’d like to throttle her but Belle knew he wouldn’t move his hands from their strategic position. 

“Oh calm down, Nicky,” Lacey said, sitting up and stretching her arms over her head with no thought to modesty. “You’ve got absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. Does he Belle?”

“Oh no, everything looks quite nice from where I’m sitting,” Belle said with a smile. “Good on you, Lace.”

Rush continued to glower at her.

“Come on, Rush,” Belle said brightly. “You’re the last man I get to see naked before my wedding. I should stuff some dollar bills down your g-string if you were wearing one.”

“Alright,” Lacey said, standing up and grabbing her clothes from beside the bed. “You’ve had your fun. Let’s leave Nick alone to stew while we get ready.”

Lacey dragged Belle off the bed as she waggled her eyebrows at her sister’s boyfriend. 

“You know,” Belle whispered loudly as they left the room. “He and Gold have a lot more in common than their accents.” 


	2. Chapter 2

“You didn’t have to do that, you know?”

Belle looked up from where she was seated in front of the bathroom vanity, as Ruby curled her hair.

“Do what?”

Lacey rolled her eyes, turning back to her own mirror, mascara wand in hand.

“Humiliate Nick.”

Belle stifled a snort. “I didn’t humiliate him.” She darted a quick glance at her sister. “Did I?”

“What did you do?” Ruby asked confusedly, forcibly turning Belle’s head to the side so she could work on her hair.

“She jumped in bed with me and Nick this morning,” Lacey explained. “He fell out the bed and Belle saw his cock.”

Ruby snorted a laugh. “Wow, Belle, that was positively Lacey of you.”

“It’s my wedding day,” she said, crossing her arms petulantly. “I needed my maid of honor.”

Ruby arched an eyebrow at her in the mirror. “Okay, bridezilla.”

“Anyway, he didn’t need to be humiliated,” Belle insisted. “Everything was adequate.”

“More than adequate,” Lacey inserted.

“Whatever,” Belle said with a wave of her hand. “Besides it was payback. What’s the big deal?”

Lacey chewed on her lip. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Nick’s just been kind of weird all weekend, and I don’t want to exacerbate it.”

“How so?” Ruby asked, pulling out a box of bobby pins and starting to pin up Belle’s hair.

Lacey put down her mascara, pulling her blush out of her makeup bag and twisting the brush in her hands.

“I don’t know,” she said haltingly. “He was just kind of distant at the rehearsal dinner last night. That’s why I left and went to his room, I wanted to make sure things were okay with us.”

“They looked okay from where I was standing,” Belle said and Ruby let out a giggle.

“Yeah, well the sex is all well and good,” Lacey returned. “But something just seems off. Maybe it’s the whole wedding thing. I don’t think he really wants to be here. He’s not really a wedding guy.”

“Wasn’t he married before?” Ruby asked. Lacey shot her a dirty look.

“Yes, thank you for bringing that up. I love dwelling on the tragic death of the wife he adored.”

Ruby raised her hands up in supplication. “I’m just saying he’s had a wedding before. How do you know he’s not a wedding guy?”

Lacey just stared at her. “Because he’s just not. Champagne and tuxes and crab cakes are not his thing. He’s here because I asked him to come and he’s too nice to say no to me. But he’s miserable and it’s bringing me down.”

Lacey ended in a huff, slamming down her makeup brush against the counter.

“Maybe he’s nervous,” Ruby said sagely, twisting Belle’s hair up into an elegant knot.

“About what?” Lacey asked.

“All this,” Ruby said, gesturing around them at the lavish hotel suite. “Belle is your twin sister and she’s getting married. Maybe he thinks you expect this soon.”

Belle and Ruby both looked at Lacey expectantly before she broke into gales of laughter.

“Like I want to marry Rush,” she cackled. “We are so not that couple.”

“You’ve been together two years,” Belle pointed out. “It’s not completely crazy.”

“It’s by far the longest and most stable relationship I’ve ever seen you in,” Ruby added.

“Yeah, but…” Lacey paused, considering their words.

“You love him, don’t you?” Belle prompted.

“Well, sure.”

“And you want to be with him, ideally forever,” Ruby continued.

“I mean, we never specified _forever_ …”

“You don’t plan on ever seeing anyone else, do you?” Belle asked.

“Well, no.”

“So why is it crazy that he might be thinking you want to get married?”

Lacey couldn’t argue with their logic. Is that what was bothering Nick? He thought she expected a ring?

“But we’ve never talked about it,” she said. “He couldn’t possibly think that’s what I want.”

“So you definitely don’t want to marry him, then?” Ruby asked.

“Of course not,” Lacey said with a shrug. “Marriage is not for me. Things have been going well between us, so why bother throwing a party we can’t afford just to affirm that we’re together forever. Seems kind of silly.”

Belle arched an eyebrow at her from the mirror.

“Present company excluded,” Lacey was quick on the uptake. “This wedding is totally necessary. The $3000 bridesmaids dresses, the cake that costs more than my car, all totally necessary.”

Belle rolled her eyes. “You know I’d have been happy with something much smaller. But John wanted me to have everything.”

“This wedding costs more than I will make in a lifetime,” Ruby said with a sigh. Belle blushed, looking down at her hands embarrassed.

“Did someone say $3000 bridesmaid dresses?” called Ariel from the doorway, three garment bags slung over her shoulder. “All steamed and pressed. Time to get dressed, girls!”


	3. Chapter 3

“What’s this?” Nicholas Rush asked, staring down at the martini glass in front of him. It was filled with a shimmering gold liquid, and garnished with something that looked suspiciously like glitter decorating the rim. He supposed it had to be edible, but the way this was wedding was going, he didn’t completely put it past them to decorate the barware in actual gold dust.

“The signature wedding cocktail,” the bartender said with a smile. “A Gold rush. It’s a mixture of bourbon, ginger liqueur, lemon juice and a splash of champagne, garnished with gold sugar.”

Rush continued to glare down at the offending cocktail, made worse by the unintended portmanteau.

“Scotch,” he said to the bartender, shoving the martini glass away. “And I’ll tip you extra if you never offer me one of those again.”

The bartender nodded, taking the offending drink away and pouring Rush a scotch, neat.

He turned to take in the reception around him. The ballroom was filled to bursting with flowers in every shade of blue imaginable with accents of gold and cream. Elegant tables were set around a large parquet dance floor, flickering candles on the surfaces that weren’t covered by flowers. Lights were strung over the dance floor bathing the room in soft light that didn’t overwhelm. A live band was playing on a small stage to one end, jazz standards rather than top 40 pop hits, he was glad to hear. It seemed most of Storybrooke were in attendance, come to watch the spectacle.

It was utterly ridiculous. And now there was a signature cocktail to top it all off.

The wedding itself had been nice, Nick could admit. It was clear that Belle and Gold loved each other very much. It was equally clear that most of the guests in attendance were there for the bride. When asked if he was with the bride or the groom, he’d said groom in an act of solidarity though he needn’t have bothered. Ushers were seating guests on both sides of the church equally to avoid the disparity.

Once Lacey had walked up the aisle though, he’d lost track of anything else happening at the front of the church. She was wearing a floor length royal blue gown of shimmering sequins that seemed to pour over her form like liquid. The deep V neckline of her dress exposed the creamy white skin of her décolletage and a slit up the side showed off Lacey’s enviable legs. It was elegant, yet decidedly Lacey and she’d taken his breath away.

He’d always heard it was bad form to upstage the bride on her wedding day, but Lacey had done it.

In spite of himself, Rush had imagined Lacey walking up a different aisle. Instead of a big church, it was somewhere small and private like they were the only two people alive. Instead of blue, she was in white, walking toward him.

He shook his head. It was a silly thought. Lacey definitely didn’t want to marry him, no matter what he thought on the subject. She was only 23. She certainly wouldn’t want to shackle herself to him more than she already had. Besides, Lacey was hardly the wedding type. It had taken long enough for the two of them to commit to dating, he couldn’t imagine her being eager for marriage.

Besides, Rush himself had done the marriage thing before. The specter of Gloria had almost ruined their relationship once before. Lacey had already felt like she was second runner up in his life, a stand in for the wife he had lost. If he proposed, she might feel like he was going through the motions with her, replacing Gloria once again.

But Rush couldn’t deny that he’d liked being married. He’d like being married to Lacey. It was a shame it wouldn’t happen.

As if summoned he felt a hand on his shoulder, turning to see the very woman who occupied his thoughts.

“Hey,” she said with a smile. “How’d I do?”

“You were very honorable in your maidenly duties,” he said with a smirk.

The bartender placed his scotch down in front of him and offered Lacey one of the signature cocktails which she accepted happily. Rush stared at her incredulously.

“When in Rome,” she said with a shrug, taking a long sip from the glass. A moment later she’d slammed it back down on the bar.

“Good God that’s awful,” she said with a gag. “Bourbon on the rocks, please.”

Rush continued to smirk at her. A bit of the gold sugar from the rim of her glass had stuck to her lips and he itched to lick it off.

“I could have told you that would be terrible,” he said. “It just looks ridiculous.”

“Yeah,” Lacey agreed. “Belle’s college roommate Ariel is a wedding planner and she kind of went overboard with things. She did help me pick out my dress though.”

“Well for that, I am eternally grateful to Ariel,” Rush said, pulling Lacey closer to him and breathing against her ear. “You look bloody gorgeous.”

Lacey bit her lip and Rush indulged himself, seeking out her lips and darting his tongue across them, tasting the sugar there.

“Maybe that drink isn’t half bad after all,” he growled.

Lacey narrowed her eyes at him, picking up her bourbon from the bar.

“Don’t be cheesy,” she admonished, taking a sip of her drink. “Come dance with me.”

The band had started up ‘The Way You Look Tonight’ as Lacey dragged Rush out on to the dance floor.

“And I’m cheesy?” he asked, wrapping his arms around Lacey’s waist as hers wound around his neck.

“Shut up,” she smirked. “It’s a wedding. You’re supposed to get drunk, dance and bang the maid of honor. I intend for you to do all of the above.”

“Is the dancing a prerequisite to the banging?” he wondered aloud.

Lacey nuzzled against his ear. “Absolutely.”

They settled into a comfortable silence, Lacey’s head resting against Rush’s chest as they swayed to the music. He could smell her shampoo, feel the warmth of her body through his suit jacket. The wedding was ridiculous, but for this moment it was all worth it.

“It’s all so silly, don’t you think?” Lacey said out of nowhere, looking up at him.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“The whole wedding thing,” Lacey clarified. “And not just this one, marriage in general. It’s like, why do you need all of this? You either love someone or you don’t. Why throw a party just to declare it to other people?”

Rush’s hand tightened around Lacey’s waist inadvertently. There was his answer then. She definitely wouldn’t ever want to marry him. It didn’t matter really. He knew Lacey loved him. He knew they were happy together. But some old fashioned part of him wanted the proof, the rings on their fingers that stated for all the world that he was hers and she was his.

“I think it’s nice,” he said stiffly.

Lacey pulled back, looking at him in surprise.

“You do?”

Rush cursed himself, wishing he had stayed silent. The last thing he wanted tonight was to scare Lacey off for a final, damning time. He never knew how to take it slow enough with her, barreling through every milestone in their relationship and having to pick up the pieces later. Their first kiss, the first time they’d had sex, the first time he’d said ‘I love you’ it had all ended in disaster. He was not making the same mistake now.

“It’s nothing,” he said, pulling Lacey back against him, but Lacey wasn’t having it.

“I’m just surprised is all,” Lacey said. “You never struck me as the marriage type of guy.”

Rush raised an eyebrow at her. “I was the marriage type of guy for twelve years.”

“Yeah, but that was Gloria,” Lacey said with a shrug. “She was special.”

It was Rush’s turn to be confused.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I didn’t actually know Gloria, but from what I’ve heard from you she was, I don’t know, classy. She went to Oxford and played the violin. She was smart and cultured and the kind of woman men marry. I’m just not.”

Rush shook his head, startled that even after two years Lacey still felt inferior.

“You’re special, Lacey,” he insisted.

Lacey gave him a wry look.

“I know you love me,” she said, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “But I want you to know I don’t expect all this. This is Belle, not me. I don’t need a diamond ring to prove anything.”

Rush just felt more and more confused. What was she talking about? Was she afraid he was going to propose to her and wanted to stop him in his tracks? Well, it was the truth, but he wasn’t stupid enough to actually follow through on the impulse. Was she trying to drive home the point that she would never in a million years marry him?

“I never thought you did,” he replied, dropping his hands from her waist and stepping away. “Trust me, Lacey, I have never once been under the impression you wanted to marry me. In fact you’ve been quite clear it’s the last thing you want.”

Lacey wrinkled her brow, looking completely flummoxed.

“I’ll be at the bar,” Rush said, stalking off in the direction of the scotch. He’d danced, now he was going to get drunk. But Rush didn’t think he’d be having the pleasure of banging the maid of honor after all.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ashadeofpemberley prompted: WWIM!Gold- Did Belle say anything to you about her interesting morning? Also how happy are you that Belle is now officially Mrs. Gold?

“What are you smiling about?” Gold whispered against Belle’s ear. It was a rare moment together on their wedding day. He’d only just managed to whisk her away from well-wishers and out on to the dance floor for their first dance as Mr. and Mrs. Gold. Most of their guests were too intimidated by him to say more than a quick congratulations, but Belle had been swarmed by people ever since the ceremony ended. Other than a few hastily snapped staged photographs and the short time it took to exchange vows, he’d barely spent a moment with Belle all day.

And now, when they finally had a moment together, she was smirking and staring off to the side of the dance floor. Gold wasn’t a vain man, but he’d like to have his wife’s full attention on their wedding day.

“Can’t a bride smile on her wedding day?” Belle returned looking up at him. She was absolutely radiant in her gown, the delicate lace sleeves and full skirt giving it an air of innocence before she turned to show that the whole thing was backless. That revelation had caused his mouth to go dry, wishing the reception would hurry up and end so he could whisk her away to their honeymoon suite.

He trailed his fingers along her exposed spine, pulling her infinitesimally closer against him. Belle gasped slightly, her eyes darkening.

“Of course,” he replied with his own smirk. “But I’d rather hoped she’d be smiling at me.”

Belle huffed out a laugh, her smile becoming conspiratorial.

“I saw Rush naked this morning,” she snorted out.

Gold arched an eyebrow. “So you’re smiling because you saw another man naked on our wedding day? Should I be offended?”

Belle rolled her eyes, the hand on his shoulder tightening.

“Of course not,” she said, gifting him with a quick brush of her lips against his. “You’re the only naked man I want in my life. It was just payback for that time with the koala.”

It was Gold’s turn to roll his eyes. “Don’t remind me.”

“But Lacey wasn’t so amused by it,” Belle continued. “Leading to a rather strange conversation about her not wanting to marry Rush which sounded more like her fears that he wouldn’t want to marry her.”

“You think Lacey wants to get married?” he asked. He couldn’t quite picture Lacey in the white dress, settling down with a house and a picket fence. But then he’d never pictured her with a surly physics professor twice her age either. He rather thought he might not know Lacey very well at all.

“I think Lacey doesn’t _not_ want to get married and that alone freaks her the hell out,” Belle returned, winding her arms around his neck, putting her beautiful face just inches from his. She was in very great danger of being kissed. But before he could close the gap between them she started talking again.

“But she’s also scared that Rush won’t want to marry her and therefore she’s more committed to the relationship than he is which is just horrifying for someone like Lacey who has never been committed to anything in her entire life.”

Gold tightened his arms around Belle, pulling her flush against him. “Can we not talk about your sister right now?” he asked, nuzzling against her neck. She smelled amazing.

Belle let out a tinkling little laugh, one hand winding it’s way into his hair, massaging the nape of his neck in a way that made him want to purr.

“I just want my sister to be as deliriously happy as I am,” she breathed.

“I rather think that’s impossible with Rush.”

“Some would say the same about you,” she pointed out. “In fact they have. But we’ve proven them wrong haven’t we?”

It was the truth. Gold was deliriously happy. He couldn’t remember a time in his life when he’d ever been this happy. He was married to Belle, the solid weight of the moonstone ring on his left ring finger a reminder that this wasn't some miraculous dream. His son had actually shown up to be his best man and was currently in the corner flirting hard, and surprisingly successfully, with their attractive blonde sheriff. Despite a lifetime of regrets, failures and disappointment, all was finally as it should be.

“We certainly have,” Gold returned, pulling back to look Belle in the eye. “Now, care to dance, Mrs. Gold?”

Belle bit her lip, her cheeks coloring. “I could get used to the sound of that.”

She lay her head against his chest, her hair tickling his nose as they swayed to the music, not a care in the world beyond each other.

 


	5. Chapter 5

Lacey watched Rush stalk away, feeling her heart sinking. She’d obviously said the wrong thing as per usual.

She’d just wanted to assure him that she didn’t expect anything from him. He’d been acting strange all weekend and she wanted things to go back to normal. She was hoping they could have fun tonight, enjoy the excess of the wedding and the open bar, maybe cut out early and fuck each other to unconsciousness. Now she was all alone on the dance floor while Rush was off being miserable.

What the hell had happened?

She bit her lip, trying to figure out what to do next. She wanted to go after him, but if Rush was in one of his moods it was probably better to leave him to his own devices.

Her mind was made up for her by a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Hey, we’re about to cut the cake and I need my bridesmaids for pictures,” Belle said breathlessly. “Please, it’ll take five minutes.”

“Alright,” Lacey agreed. “Yeah, of course. Maid of honor reporting for duty.”

It was another half hour once the photographer had corralled the bridesmaids and Neal around the cake to take pictures with the happy couple. Lacey tried her best to be in the moment as they toasted their champagne and Belle and Gold fed each other little pieces of cake. But she was distracted, casting her eyes around for a glimpse of Rush. He said he’d be at the bar but it appeared he’d left the ballroom altogether.

When she’d finally been released from her maid of honor duties, she scooped up two pieces of wedding cake, snuck a bottle of champagne from behind the bar, and went in search of her wayward boyfriend.

She was about to give up and go check their hotel room when she finally spotted him out a side door. He was in a courtyard to one side of the ballroom, leaning against a cocktail table with a glass in one hand and a bottle of whisky in the other. Lacey apparently wasn’t the only one to raid the bar. The chilly night air had driven everyone else inside and the small courtyard with its ivy covered brick walls was completely deserted.

Lacey approached him from behind, setting down her stolen bottle of champagne on the table and waiting for Rush to look at her.

“I brought cake,” she said tentatively, holding the plate out and waving it in his direction. “It’s good, expensive cake. It’d be a shame for it to go to waste. And let’s not kid ourselves, you definitely need the calories.”

Rush ignored her, and the cake, downing the rest of the contents of his glass before refilling it.

Lacey felt her ire rising. Here she was attempting to apologize for whatever the hell she’d done and he wasn’t even looking at her.

“I know you didn’t want to come this weekend and you felt like you had to, but you don’t need to be such a dick about it.”

“I’m being a dick?” he asked incredulously, finally breaking his silence.

“Yeah,” Lacey spat back. “You’re being kind of a dick.”

Rush snorted, staring down at his glass and pointedly not looking at her. This wasn’t going well. She really didn’t want to fight.

Taking a deep breath, she tried a different approach.

“What’s wrong, Nick?” Lacey asked, laying a hand on his forearm. “You’ve seemed surly all weekend.”

Rush shot a look at her.

“Well, even more surly than usual.”

His lips quirked in the beginnings of a smile and Lacey counted it as a win.

“I don’t know, Lace,” he said with a shake of his head. “I didn’t think it mattered, but maybe we just want different things.”

“What?” she asked, suddenly terrified. She was not getting dumped by the only man she’d ever loved at her sister's wedding. She couldn’t accept that. “What are you talking about? I want _you_ , that’s all I want.”

He gave her a sad little smile, his eyes suspiciously wet. “I want you too.”

“Then what’s the problem?" she demanded, feeling panic rising in her chest. "We don’t want different things, we want the same things. We've always wanted the same things. I want you and you want me, that's all that matters.”

Rush raised an eyebrow at her. “Are you sure about that?”

Now Lacey was truly confused. Nick had gotten upset and stormed off the dance floor when she’d reassured him she didn’t want to get married. She was trying to tell him that they wanted the same things. Neither of them wanted to get married. They were perfectly happy as is. Right?

The truth hit Lacey suddenly and she felt slightly ill. She’d all but cackled at Nick that she’d never want to marry him. Even though they never planned on marriage, stating it outright in such a way had to sting.

“Look, I wasn’t planning to propose or anything if that’s what you’re worried about,” Rush interrupted as though reading her thoughts.

“I wasn’t worried about that at all,” Lacey said. “Why would you think that?”

Rush motioned over his shoulder toward the ballroom. “You were going on and on about how terrible marriage was. I thought you were trying to dissuade me.”

Lacey slapped a hand against her forehead, letting out an audible groan.

“Fucking Ruby,” she muttered under her breath.

“What?”

“Ruby and Belle,” she explained. “They got in my head. They said you probably thought I wanted to get married because of all this wedding stuff and that maybe you were freaking out about it a bit.”

Now it was Nick’s turn to be confused.

“Why would I freak out about the wedding?”

“Because you don’t want to marry me,” she said with a matter-of-fact tone.

“Who said I don’t want to marry you?”

“You just did!” she cried exasperatedly. “You said you weren’t ever planning to propose.”

“Because I know you’d never want to marry me,” he clarified. “And I didn’t say I was never going to propose, just that I wasn’t planning to do it right now.”

Lacey just stared at him.

“Did we fucking do this again?” he asked.

She threw her head back with a groan. “We’re so bad at communicating it would be comical if it wasn’t so fucking tragic.”

Beside her Rush let out a laugh, running his hands through his hair.

“So everything you said on the dance floor was because you thought I was worried about you wanting to get married?”

“Well, yeah, I guess it was,” Lacey said with a shrug. “And you’ve been upset because you thought I’d never want to marry you?”

Rush looked at a loss for words. “I don’t know. It’s not like I want to get married right this moment, but it might be nice if the option wasn’t entirely off the table.”

Lacey crossed her arms against her chest. No more half truths. They were going to get this all out in the open if it killed them.

“So do you want to?” she insisted.

“Do I want to do what?” Rush asked. For a genius, he certainly could be stupid.

Lacey rolled her eyes.

“I don’t know, do you want to fucking marry me?”

Rush just stared at her.

“I mean, I’m not the type of girl that men want to marry, but I want to be with you. And if by some bloody miracle you want to marry me, then, maybe I could be the marriage type.”

Rush leaned back on his left foot, staring at Lacey warily.

“Are you proposing to me?”

“What if I am?” Lacey said daringly.

“You,” he said, gesturing at Lacey, “Want to marry me?”

Lacey shrugged. “Wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, would it?”

“Well after that glowing review,” Rush mumbled under his breath.

“I just don’t not want to marry you,” Lacey said.

Rush looked at her completely confused. “I have no idea what you’re trying to say so why don’t you just say it.”

“I love you,” she cried, throwing her hands up in the air. “You’re the only man I have ever loved. You’re the only man I ever want to be with. So, yes. There’s no reason we shouldn’t get married.”

Rush just nodded, glancing down at the glass still clutched in his hands.

“That’s good to know.”

Lacey narrowed her eyes. “What does that mean?”

Rush shrugged one shoulder, swirling the amber liquid in his glass. “That maybe I’ll propose to you one day after all.”

“Fuck you,” she said with a roll of her eyes, but there was no malice in her words.

“I’d like you to,” he agreed with a smirk. “You did say something about banging the maid of honor.”

“I did, didn’t I,” Lacey said, glancing around. “There’s no one else out here. What’s stopping us?”

Rush gave a pointed look to the open doorway to the ballroom. Lacey just shrugged, walking over to the door and shutting it, cutting off the sounds of music from inside.

“Like I said,” she continued. “We’re all alone out here.”

She sauntered back to Rush, grabbing him by the tie and pushing him down into a wrought iron patio chair. She quickly straddled him, pulling her dress up to her hips and settling down on his lap.

“No one will see a thing,” she whispered against his ear, her teeth grazing the shell. She could feel him shudder beneath her. “So what do you say?”

“Lacey,” he said, his voice a warning, his hands grasping at her hips.

“What?” she asked, leaning back to look him in the eye.

Rush was silent for a moment before something in him broke.

“God you’re beautiful,” he sighed, capturing her mouth.

“Good answer,” she murmured against his lips.

It was quick work to get him out of his pants, her hand working him until he was hot and hard against her. Lacey slipped her panties to the side and a moment later she’d impaled herself on him, the both of them gasping for breath. There was nothing in the world but the two of them, the muffled music from the ballroom surrounding them, the high ivy covered walls of the courtyard seeming to cocoon them from the outside world.

Rush gripped her hips even tighter, urging her to move and Lacey was happy to comply, lifting herself up and slamming back down against him. Rush threw his head back, sweat beading along his forehead despite the cool night air.

Lacey gripped his hair, pulling his face back to hers.

“I love you, too” he moaned.

“I know,” she returned, kissing him hard. “You wanna marry me.”

"I don't not want to marry you," he quoted her back.

Lacey pinched his nipple through his shirt for that and Rush jumped, his cock twitching inside her.

“I’m glad we can joke about this now,” he said with a grin that Lacey wanted to wipe off his face. She gave his nipple another tweak that made his hips just buck up into her even harder.

“Don’t be so smug,” she panted. “I could still say no.”

“Shut up,” he said, kissing her again. And then he was moving and Lacey lost the ability to speak.

She was so close, almost to that peak when the sound of a door opening broke through the haze.

“Lacey?” came a feminine voice, as Rush startled beneath her, almost causing her to fall off him. She gripped on to his shoulders for balance.

“Oh, God,” Ruby exclaimed from the doorway to the ballroom. “Seriously, guys?”

Lacey pulled at the skirt of her gown, making sure nothing was on display, then glanced over her shoulder at her friend. Rush had his face buried against Lacey’s neck pretending he was anywhere else.

“How can I help you, Ruby?” she asked, very aware that Rush’s cock was still inside her. Rush was mumbling something against her neck that sounded like “bloody hell, not again.”

“Belle is about to throw the bouquet,” Ruby said, making a show of shielding her eyes. “She wants you to…come.”

Ruby winced at her choice of word and Lacey let out a guffaw.

“Oh, tell her I’m almost there.”

“Tell her yourself!” Ruby called over her shoulder, slamming the door behind her.

Lacey looked down at Rush, biting her lip.

“You didn’t lock the door?” Nick said, exasperated.

“Where would have been the fun in that?” she replied, rolling her hips against his until he completely forgot about the interruption.

A few minutes later, a very flushed Lacey made her way back into the ballroom just in time to catch her sister’s bouquet. If anyone had asked Belle about it later, she’d have insisted it was entirely by chance.


	6. Epilogue

“So how are things going with Rush?”

Belle and Lacey were having their first wine night since she’d officially become Mrs. Belle Gold. She’d missed her sister but after a month long honeymoon trip and then settling in to their new home in Boston, she hadn’t had much time to catch up.

“We got married,” Lacey said flatly.

“What?” Belle exclaimed, sputtering on her drink before eyeing Lacey’s wine glass critically. “Why? Are you pregnant?”

“No,” Lacey said with a shake of her head. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Why else would you run off and get married without telling anyone? When was this?”

“Two months ago,” Lacey returned with a shrug. “Not long after your wedding.”

“You’ve been married for two months and didn’t tell me?” Belle gasped.

Lacey just shrugged again. “It’s not like it changed anything. We were already living together. It’s just more official now.”

“You’re Mrs. Lacey Rush,” Belle spat out.

“Nah,” Lacey returned. “I didn’t change my name. Still just Lacey French.”

Belle shook her head, still reeling from the news. She’d come over to have a glass of wine with her twin and catch up, but apparently she’d missed a lot.

“How could you not tell me?” she demanded. She told Lacey everything. They were as close as two people could be. And yet her sister had completely left her out of one of the biggest moments of her life. “I wanted you with me when I got married. You didn’t want me there?”

“No!” Lacey exclaimed. “It’s not like that at all, Bells. I just, I don’t know, didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I love Nick, I wanted to be married to Nick, but I didn’t want to be the center of attention.”

Belle raised an eyebrow. “That would be a first.”

Lacey shot her sister a look. “This felt like something Nick and I had to do on our own. I mean, it’s his second marriage and would anyone believe I was gonna settle down anyway? We’re not exactly conventional.”

Belle just shook her head. “I just hate that I wasn’t there,” she said. “And I feel so stupid for not knowing all this time.”

Lacey reached out a hand to squeeze Belle’s shoulder.

“I love you and I wish you could have been there,” she said. “But you were getting fucked all over Europe at the time so honestly this is all your fault.”

Belle shrugged Lacey’s hand off.

“Does dad know?”

Lacey snorted into her wine glass. “Fuck, no. And you’d better not tell him.”

“Did you have a bachelorette party?” she demanded.

“The first twenty-three years of my life were one continuous bachelorette party,” Lacey pointed out. “Didn’t seem necessary. Besides we didn’t even know we were going to do it before hand. It’s not like we had a plan. I just had a dress and we decided to go for it.”

“I honestly can’t believe you did this.”

Lacey shrugged. “I mean, maybe one day we’ll have a big ceremony and invite everyone and you can pretend it’s for the first time. But we just really wanted to be married. So now we are.”

Belle sat back in her chair, sulking slightly. “I’m not letting you off the hook for this. I’m really upset.”

“I know,” Lacey said apologetically. “I’m sorry I got married without you.”

Belle nodded. “Are you happy?”

Lacey’s face split into a grin that could have lit up the whole of Storybrooke. “I’m really happy.”

And Belle supposed that was all that really mattered.


End file.
